The present invention relates to mineral mining installations.
For winning mineral, and especially coal, it is well known to use a winning machine, such as a plough or a shearer, which is moved along the mineral face and a scraper-chain conveyor. It is usual to provide one or more guides on the conveyor to guide the winning machine. In some installations the machine is driven by a chain which runs at one side of the conveyor. The conveyor can also accommodate other facilities for the machine, such as hydraulic pressure fluid conduits and water supply conduits.
It is also known to provide a different form of propulsion for the machine. In this regard, the machine employs it own drive system which moves a rotatable member or chain, for example, which engages with a fixed track extending along the working. Examples of this form of drive system are described in German Pat. No. 2,547,826 and in U.S. Pat. No. 3,753,596.
To supply power to the mineral winning machine it is also known to utilize a live electric rail in a guard housing. A sliding contact moves along the rail and supplies electric current via a pick-up arm to the machine. An example of this arrangement is described in German Pat. No. 1,515,340. It is also known to supply water to the machine with the aid of a similar arrangement wherein a housing contains water and a collector moves along the housing and supplies water to the machine through a conduit. An arrangement of this type is descibed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,072,355.
In general, the known systems for the supply of facilities to the winning machine are not readily adaptable to enable both shearers and ploughs to be employed and it is not readily possible to have several winning machines supplied simultaneously.
A general object of this invention is to provide an improved installation.